<p>Hey guys- I plan on finishing my Common Application essays before school starts so that I have time to focus on my studies and ec's, but I'm kind of freaking out. I know that the essays will make or break me. What books have your read that helped with your essay, or advice you've recieved that was particularly helpful? How should I even start? Thanks.</p>
<p>U.Va</a>. Office of Admission Essays</p>
<p>Harry Bauld, On Writing the College Application Essay,</p>
<p>Here's some advice:</p>
<p>Reed</a> Magazine: My Essay also by Harry Bauld</p>
<p>Thanks vossron!</p>
<p>I just went to my library and picked up 2-3 college essay books. Don't just take the ones that tell you how to write an essay - those tend to be pretty obvious if you are already a decent writer. Instead, pick up a collection of essays that got people into the ivies, read as many as you can, and try to pick out trends, similarities, or simply elements you think would work well in your own essay.
And in retrospect, I would say that outside material was of marginal help to me when I wrote my essay. In the end, I just wrote what came to me without following rigid rules or a predetermined outline. I find that the essay sounds more creative and relaxed when you don't plan out everything you say. Of course, it always helps to know where you're going (I just wrote out one key phrase that defined the idea of each paragraph, minus the intro and conclusion), but don't spend more time on the outline than your actual essay. Save this for English class.</p>
<p>I would actually advise against reading "collection of essays" books because you tend to copy the voice of the essays you have been reading, instead of writing from your own original style.</p>
<p>I got "What You Don't Know Can Keep You Out of College" from the library and skimmed it today...absolutely horrifying. Describes characteristics that will get anyone REJECTED ALWAYS...i thought it was way over the top</p>
<p>Absolutely everyone should read the article linked by vossron above. Excellent examples of what not to do. A long time ago, I posted an article about a structure for an essay that could help get you started. I'll talk about that in a minute. But first, many people have trouble getting STARTED on writing about a suggested topic, so getting some help on the first sentence will help unlock the rest of the essay.</p>
<p>The "formula" I was suggesting is to narrow the topic to a something specific that also points to where you want to go in the future (major, or profession, or whatever). Then begin writing the essay by dropping the reader into the middle of an interesting/tense/mysterious experience of yours and ending the first paragraph with a cliff-hanger. Then go into the real gist of the essay, and then, in the final paragraph, go back and resolve the story in light of the middle part of the essay, bringing everything together.</p>
<p>For example (and I'm inventing this on the fly here, so don't be too critical), suppose the essay prompt was something like, "Describe how an experience you have had has changed or affected your life."</p>
<p>Hmmmm.... How do you even get started on this? Many, as a way of starting, will repeat the topic in the opening sentence: "I was 16 years old when I had an experience which changed my life." No, no, no, no. Let's try the formula above. First, think about where you want to go with your life or in a major. For the sake of an example let's say that perhaps you want to major in biology and perhaps, maybe, maybe not, eventually go to Med School.</p>
<p>Then think about any past experiences that you have had that can relate to that. Again, as an example, let's say you had a part time job in a veterinary clinic, cleaning dog kennels, but that as you worked there, you got to do more and more observation on some of the cases (still inventing on the fly).</p>
<p>So here is the sample essay (in abbreviated form). See how it fits into the structure I defined above, and see how easily it comes, once you've got the topic specifics:</p>
<p>*The leg was a bloody, tangled mess. As the anesthetic began to work, the dog seemed to at last be free of what must have been terrible pain. His long tongue lolled to the side. The car had done a job on this little fellow, and I wondered if he would make it. "It doesn't look good," the Vet said quietly. "We'll need to amputate." He shaved the leg above the wound and gently sterilized the skin. He then used the scalpel to expose the bone, which glistened white in the bright overhead light. He reached for his bone saw. The surgical mask I wore while I observed the procedure started to feel claustrophobic, but I couldn't turn away. *</p>
<p>I got hired at the veterinary clinic to clean kennels. As far as I was concerned, it was just a job - a way to make some money for the upcoming school year. But the more I worked in the clinic, the more interested I became in the veterinary work itself, especially trauma cases. Again and again I saw the vet trying desparately trying to save the lives of dogs and cats. Sometimes they did not make it, but most times had happier outcomes. The vet's knowledge and quick actions not only saved the lives of animals, but saved families from the tragedy of losing a loved pet. </p>
<p>(etc, etc... you see where this is going.... continue the essay in this vein, but then go back to the story in the last paragraph and tie all of this together in how you were affected)</p>
<p>The amputation was a success and the dog recovered and lived a long happy life. He got around so well on three legs that I sometimes wondered if he even knew he was missing a limb. That summer job did something for me far beyond the seven dollars an hour I got. It redirected my future. Could **I* ever have a career that had such an impact? Whether I reach my goal of becoming a physician or veer into some other medical area is still to be determined. But I am starting on a path that will allow me those options. Thanks to a three-legged dog.*</p>
<p>Corny, maybe, and maybe a bit contrived, BUT, it won't sound like every other essay crossing the admissions officer's desk, and it will be about YOU by way of an interesting story. And the last little touch, about the three-legged dog, will bring a smile to almost anyone. YOU ARE SO ADMITTED....</p>
<p>Anyway, try this out with YOUR plans and experiences and essay topics.</p>
<p>Again, don't be too critical... this was an on-the-fly first draft.</p>
<p>Digmedia, don't be too critical? That was amazing! Seriously, if that was just a two second draft, I’d love to see some writing that you put a lot of effort into!</p>
<p>That opening paragraph is going to grab any reader’s attention, and it was perfect “show, don’t tell” technique; describing the little details and the claustrophobic yet riveted feeling the writer experienced. I also really liked how honest the writer was about why he originally got the job – just a way to make money – and how his interest ultimately grew into a career goal. Don’t be afraid that saying something like that will somehow discredit the love you have for the activity now. And ending with a last line about the three legged dog, so cute and memorable, is priceless. Good job, and a good example for people starting out on their own essays!</p>
<p>Thanks, Star*, but you brought up something important that I forgot to mention: visual details. That really helps put the reader in the middle of the situation or story.</p>
<p>amazing, truly...
no we all need to find our little three legged dogs to get us int harvard and stanford...lol</p>
<p>Cheap and great. It's from Sparknotes. $8. =]</p>
<p>10 Things you gotta know: College Application Essays.</p>
<p>Digmedia,</p>
<p>That was terrific! I will print that out and show it to my daughter. It's a wonderful framework to get started.</p>
<p>digmedia i wish i could write something like that for a final draft</p>
<p>Writing the above is easy once you've practiced the formula and thought of a good story. If you see several of these in a row, the essay loses its novelty and is not so impressive after all. Here's another...</p>
<p>(btw, you should not use of copy these. Since these will be on every search engine in a matter of a day or so, it is very easy to get caught)</p>
<p>A very common essay prompt is "Why do you want to major in ______?" I'm going to thumb through a list of majors and pick one at random.... HISTORY!!</p>
<p>No, actually, I did a sample for that one in another thread, so let me pick another I know NOTHING about... ACTING (Is that a Theater major?)</p>
<p>So, story with visuals, main part of the essay, bring together in last paragraph, cute ending....</p>
<p>Not everyone can have a bloody-dog story to fall back one, so this one will be MUCH less dramatic than the one above. But notice the structural similarities.</p>
<p>*It was hot backstage, and we all were a little sweaty. It was the final dress rehearsal before opening night and the cast had Ibsen's "An Enemy of the People" down pat. The first full dress had gone so well that a series of pranks and minor line changes had been planned as a practical joke on the director. Actors were busy with heavy period costumes and stage make-up, several spraying gray into their hair to make themselves look older than the students they were. The sounds and smells of preparation tinged the air and added to the excitement of the evening. The woman playing Petra, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Stockman in the play, came to me, already in her long, brown dress, holding a sizable pillow and some safety pins. She held out the pillow - a lumpy mass with a flowered pillowcase - for me to take. "Quick," she said, with a conspiratorial grin, "help me pin this under my skirt." I didn't at first realize what she wanted me to do...</p>
<p>Even though I was enlisted as a stagehand, this was also my first acting gig. I was an extra in the crowd scene, the one who throws a stone shattering a glass window pane. How had I been convinced to go onto the stage? I thought every eye would focus on my moment, the rock would miss its mark, and reviewers would surely point out that the play would have been a great success "except for one crowd member who singlehandedly sabotaged the night."</p>
<p><a href="Continue%20with%20the%20main%20part%20of%20the%20essay%20to%20get%20to%20the%20correct%20word%20length,%20then%20return%20to%20the%20story%20and%20tie%20it%20all%20together.">/i</a>*</p>
<p>I watched from just off-stage as Petra, wrapped in a cloak and hat and holding a bundle of books, awaited her initial entrance in Act I. On cue, she walked onto the set as her father said the line, "Good evening, Petra. Come along." </p>
<p>Petra leaned over to settle her books onto a chair. She stood up, placed her hat on a rack, and began to remove her cloak. "And you have all been sitting here enjoying yourselves," she said, "while I have been out being very busy." The cloak dropped to the floor, revealing a very "pregnant" Petra! </p>
<p>The director's face froze into place, but no one could continue with the play. Laughter overtook us all, cast and crew. And at that moment, all of my nervousness melted away and was replaced by a sheer sense of fun. </p>
<p>I went on to bigger and better roles, each helping reinforce the fact that I was most at home in the theater, but the feeling was fed by the camaraderie of the people who all work together to get from a first reading to opening night. That dress rehearsal was the igniting of a passion that grew, flame-like, starting with that lumpy pillow in the flower print pillowcase.*</p>
<p>To be perfectly honest... the whole post above was invented at the moment (using a real experience, but of course I never wanted to become an actor) and took approximately 25 minutes to write - a bit longer than the the first essay because I had to look up the Ibsen play, scan through it, and try to remember who was who. :)</p>
<p>Notice that the formula is also losing a bit of luster as you spot the similarities, but in a sea of essays, this one - though not as strong as the one above - might be remembered.</p>
<p>Forget the books. If you can crank out a piece with decent grammar and mechanics, it's all about voice. </p>
<p>Do whatever it takes to strip away your self-consciousness when writing and just write for yourself. </p>
<p>My essay--the one which I ended up using for all of my applications-- was written on 2 hours of sleep and hung over like there's no tomorrow. </p>
<p>I'm not advocating getting plastered and writing, but for me, that cut all of the distraction and "what will the admissions officer think of me if I wrote this" from my essay. In the end, it was just a candid essay with my voice... and I don't think an admissions officer can ask for more.</p>
<p>Advice for people who want to write like in a more raw mental state like shockwave is talking about but don't want to get drunk to do it: stay up late. I wrote my CommonApp essay at 4AM on a school day. I think your mind is much more open and there's less interference between you, your thoughts, and your words.</p>
<p>I agree: it's all about voice.</p>
<p>I did that once. I thought I had written a brilliant story, but read it the next day after some sleep and saw what crap I had written. :)</p>
<p>^ lol!!!!
It's like when you're taking notes when you're really sleepy hahaha the weirdest stuff comes out of my pen... like I write about what I'm dreaming about during the two seconds I close my eyes and then pop them open and pretend I wasn't dozing off!</p>